C17 Chapter 16

"Hey." Sassy stopped on her tracks when she heard Hailec's voice behind her. She slowly turned around with a creased on her forehead.

"What?" she asked.

"Why do you have that mark?" Hailec ask which confused Sassy.

"What are you talking about? What mark?" she asked as she completely face Hailec.

"The dragon."

"What dragon? Are you nuts?"

"I mean this---" he was about to touch the mark behind Sassy's shoulder when she suddenly took a step back away from him.

"Don't touch me! You pervert!" Hailec's eyes went wide when he heard how she addressed him.

"What did you say? Me? A pervert?" he asked in disbelief.

How dare this girl accused him of being a pervert?

"I was just about to--" his words were cut off when the girl gestured her hands in front of him in a dismissive way.

"Whatever! Just leave me and Fhyra alone. You creep!" Sassy said as she looked at him from head to toe and disapprovingly shook her head before turning around and continued walking.

He was left there speechless and with no choice but to stare at that glowing mark on her back.

He was about to turn around and leave when something caught his eyes.

Hailec was immediately alerted as he saw dark shadows surrounding the princess' home. He closed his eyes, trying to search for the energy of the personas of the Fantasians.

His eyes immediately flew open as he felt a dark force moving at a fast rate. His eyes darted on the girl oblivious to what's happening and was cheerfully walking towards the house.

Hailec's instincts kicked in when he saw the dark shadow aiming toward Sassy. He ran towards her and push her down the ground using his body, completely dodging the approaching invisible creature.

When he saw the shadow vanished in the air, he immediately shifted his eyes down the girl below him.

"Sassy?" he called out but didn't receive any response.

He held her wrist and he realized that the girl just fainted. He stared at her for a while, not knowing how to act.

His gaze landed back on her shoulder, he groaned, closed his eyes tightly, and carried the girl in his arms.

Let's find out more about you, Sassy.

Sassy and I are both staring in the empty space where the hologram-like thing used to show.

"Did you just replay what happened that day?" Sassy questioned to no one in particular.

She tilted her head towards her shoulder, trying to look for the mark she was supposed to have according to what we have seen earlier.

I heard Hailec heaved a heavy sigh when he saw how my friend acted. He approached Sassy and gave her the wooden mirror he grab from the shelf nearby.

"You look like an idiot trying to twist your head, use that instead," he said impatiently as he placed the mirror on Sassy's palm and went back to his seat.

"How long have you been keeping her?" Cool ask.

"Since the day after the Princess' birthday," Hailec answered.

"You were able to keep her here for so long? You haven't been caught?" I asked.

Aside from trainings, the Queen also arranged some lessons and classes for me. And I've learned about the rules of the Narte Fantasia during one of my classes. And one of those is letting a mundane enter.

That's like one of the greatest sins in the whole Narte Fantasia.

"That's exactly why I didn't allow her to go out." He said in a matter-of-fact tone.

"Won't it cause you trouble in the future?" I asked as I stared at my best friend who was very fascinated with her own mark.

"Fhyra, this is so cool! It's like I have an animated tattoo!" Sassy exclaimed enthusiastically.

"I'll just cross the bridge when I get there," Hailec answered as we stared at Sassy's overjoyed expression as she stares at her back using the mirror that Hailec had lent her.

I was beginning to see Hailec in a new light.

It seems like he wasn't as bad as we thought.

"How about we bring her to the palace? She's a guardian as well. I don't think the Queen and the Royalties would mind." Cool suggested.

I saw how Hailec's face changed into an expression I can't name when he heard Cool's suggestion.

"No, the mundane stays here. It's safer for her, here." He immediately retorted.

"But—" Cool was about to protest when Hailec glared at him.

"No buts Glacia, she stays here, that's final." He said with authority, took a short glance at Sassy who was startled on how the discussion escalated, before he stormed out of the room, leaving the three of us baffled.

It took us another minute before we were able to get over it. Cool excused himself to give me and Sassy time and privacy.

'I'll be waiting outside.'

'Alright.'

I was left in the room with Sassy. She was staring at me with her hands supporting her face lazily.

"Sassy..." I called out, trying to test the waters.

"Hmmm?" she responded.

"Won't you ask anything?"

"I was actually waiting for you to tell me yourself." She answered before heaving a deep sigh. She sat properly lifted her face a bit to look at me and meet me eye to eye.

Her expression is very different from her usual bright face. She looks so serious now.

"To be honest, I am scared. No, I am terrified. I don't know where I am. I am staying with a guy we took as a creep before and I suddenly have this animated tattoo on my back. This is something beyond my level of comprehension, Fhyra." Sassy said seriously.

I was just staring at her while listening to her every word. I'm sure she's very confuse. That's understandable, I mean, I almost lost my mind when I found out about my real identity.

"I didn't know how to start or where to start asking. So now, you tell me about it." Sassy continued after a long while of silence.

I stared at her a little longer before I took a deep breath and readied myself for this storytelling.

"We are currently in Narte Fantasia, this is where my parents truly came from. I just found out that I was not actually born as a pyrokinetic, instead I inherited this ability from my mom." I started, her eyes suddenly went wide.

Oh, and just like that, she's back to her old self. I groaned inside after seeing the sudden shift in her facial expression.

"You mean, Tita Blare can control fire too? That's awesome!" she said bewildered.

I gave her a warning gaze which made her stop from fangirling over my mom.

"Yes, mom is a Flamia, that's how they address people here who have the ability to control fire. My father, on the other hand, is a Glacia, he can control water." I was about to continue when I saw her staring at me with her mouth hanging.

"Tito Ice have powers too? Gosh, Fhyra! You have super awesome parents!"

"Sassy..." I called in a warning tone.

"Sorry. You can continue." she said while her hands gestured me to continue.

"My mom is the Princess next in line in the throne of the Kingdom of Flamis, and my dad is also supposed to be the next ruler of the Kingdom of Glaciers. However, Flamias and Glacias are like sworn enemies. The love they had is forbidden, that's why when mom got pregnant, with me, they ran away and we hid in the mundane world. Your world."

"You knew about this before?" she asked which I immediately shook my head as an immediate response.

"No, I just learned about it after I woke up after Cool took me on the night of my birthday. My parents hid me in my room and asked me to wait for him to come." I saw how her serious face changed into a curious one.

"Cool? You didn't just meet him here?" she asked her brows creasing in confusion.

"No. He was the one who brought me here." I answered honestly.

"What? Why? Is he like you? Can he control fire too?" she inquired.

"No, he's a Glacia like my dad."

And suddenly a teasing smile broke into her lips.